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Speaking of which, there shouldn’t be anyone listening “Columbia PhotosThe image of the woman with the torch, which is the symbol of the American film production company and appears at the beginning, does not immediately come to mind. An image that has been forever imprinted in our minds. But have you ever wondered if this woman is a real person? And if so, what is it?
Well in fact she is a real person and as famous as she is for the brand, her name is as unknown as her story. The reason, then, for Jenny joseph which, by chance, became one of the symbols of world cinema.
The creation of Columbia and how the logo was created
It all started in 1918 when brothers Harry and Jack Conn and their friend Joel Bradt founded CBC Film Sales Corporation. The firsts years business made mainly low-budget productions. In 1924, Bradt decided to change the name of his film company to Columbia Pictures.
The logo he wore is a woman holding a torch and wearing a robe, representing Columbia, a personification of the United States.
The logo originally wore an ancient Roman who held a shield in his left hand and a grain of wheat in his right, while wearing the traditional women’s clothing of ancient Rome. That image was based on actress Evelyn Venable, who was then known for voicing “Fairy” in the Walt Disney film Pinocchio.
This logo was replaced in 1928 by the woman who carried the United States flag wrapped around her while holding a torch. For the first time, no, the name Columbia Pictures appears.
The unknown story of the most famous woman
The logo in its current form was created in 1992. Scott Mednik hired New Orleans artist Michael Dees to digitally repaint the logo and give the woman a “classic” look. Michael Dees hired Jenny Joseph, a graphic designer who worked for Times-Picayune, as a model for the logo. And not a housewife, as many believed.
In fact, because she didn’t have time, the girl agreed to help out with her lunch break.
The original Lady Columbia was dressed in the American flag, but the renovation mandated that the color be changed to white, orange and blue and not to use the “star”. In a 2013 interview, Des said he couldn’t remember whether this was due to legal or business problems.
The photoshoot lasted four hours and was taken by photographer Kathy Anderson in the living room of her New Orleans apartment.
“When the incredibly talented illustrator (and friend) Michael Dees asked me to take reference photos for a painting, I had no idea how iconic this piece of art would become. Jenny Joseph was the perfect model and the rest is history.” confessed. Anderson.
This was the first and last time that Joseph posed as a model. He never looked for prominence, nor was he interested in taking advantage of the whole story. Instead, he chose to remain anonymous, as did his story, although for the past 25 years his face has been one of the most famous as we always see it in Columbia movies.
At lunch time
Years later, more details were known about that photograph, such as the time it took place.
In 2012, Jenny Joseph in a WWL-T interview admitted that it happened during her lunch break.
“They wrapped a sheet around me and I was holding a simple desk lamp, a table lamp. And I was just holding it up. “We did that with a light bulb,” he said.
In the same interview he admitted that he never believed that it would have such an impact, that it would be the trademark of a large company and would be one of the famous figures of cinema.
